Latest news with #BrianWice
Fox News
5 days ago
- Fox News
Menendez brothers bank on new trial as backup if parole bid fails
The infamous killer Menendez brothers, who brutally slayed their parents with a shotgun inside their Beverly Hills home more than 35 years ago, have an entirely new path to freedom after a judge's order last week. Brian Wice is a Houston-based post-conviction attorney who says that the brothers scored a new victory that is completely separate from their current bid for parole. "If habeas relief is granted, this is not a resentencing," Wice told Fox News Digital. "This is an entirely new trial." "My understanding is that the relief that they have sought is an entirely new trial, because they claim that with this newly discovered, newly available evidence that there's a reasonable probability, and that's the test — not a certainty — a reasonable probability the outcome would have been different," he said. Erik and Lyle Menendez were convicted and sentenced to life without parole in a bloody shotgun massacre that left their parents, Jose and Mary "Kitty" Menendez dead. Jose was shot six times, and Kitty 10. They have spent more than 35 years in jail for the slayings in a case that captivated the world. In March 2023, the brothers filed a habeas petition claiming that evidence was forbidden from being presented at their trial. That evidence, they say, would have led a jury to find them not guilty. About eight months before the double-homicide, Erik allegedly wrote a letter to his cousin, Andy Cano, claiming that Jose had sexually abused him and Lyle. Further, an affidavit from Roy Rossello, a member of a boy band called Menudo, claimed Jose, who was a record executive, raped him when he was a 14-year-old boy in 1983 or 1984. Rossello made the claim almost 40 years after the alleged rape. If that information had been available to a jury, the brothers claim, they would not have been convicted. They also contend that the letter and the affidavit constitute new evidence that must be considered. In an informal response to that petition, filed by Los Angeles County District Attorney Nathan Hochman's office in February of this year, prosecutors denied that the letter and the affidavit constituted new evidence. They said that the Cano letter was "untimely." They also said the Rossello affidavit was "inadmissible, immaterial, and lacks credibility." Still, on July 8, Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge William C. Ryan, said that the letter and the affidavit constituted a prima facie showing that the brothers are entitled to habeas relief, and ordered Hochman's office to respond to the claim and explain why the brothers should not be granted the relief. Wice stressed that it's not an easy path forward for the brothers, and that a new trial is the light at the end of a long tunnel. "Essentially, this is your last ditch, all hands on deck, let's see what we can do to create a miracle, kind of context," he said. If the trial judge were to grant the habeas petition in favor of the brothers, vacating their conviction, that decision would then be reviewed by the California Court of Appeals, and after that, the California Supreme Court, Wice said. Either of those entities could say the trial judge erred in his or her decision, and refuse the brothers' opportunity for a new trial. "They're in a position to win, and like I said, in the context of habeas, it's survive and advance," Wice said, using a basketball analogy. "They survive and advance to another round. Are they going to cut down? Who knows?" Meanwhile, the brothers will appear before a parole board and plead their case for freedom in August. They were resentenced from life without parole to fifty years with the possibility of parole in May. Fox News Digital reached out to Los Angeles County District Attorney Nathan Hochman's office for comment.
Yahoo
19-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Ken Paxton Cleared As State Charges Dismissed After A Decade
(Texas Scorecard) – After years of legal wrangling, the state has officially moved to dismiss the long-standing felony securities fraud charges against Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton. The charges—first brought by a Collin County grand jury in 2015—accused Paxton of failing to properly disclose financial ties to a tech firm while soliciting investors. But over the next nine years, the case became mired in delays, venue changes, and disputes over special prosecutor compensation. In March 2024, Paxton and prosecutors reached a pretrial diversion agreement to cancel the upcoming trial. Under its terms, Paxton completed over 100 hours of community service, 30 hours of ethics training, and paid full restitution—reportedly around $300,000—to the alleged victims. At the time, Paxton's attorney, Dan Cogdell, emphasized that the deal included no admission of guilt. 'There is no admission of any wrongdoing on Ken's part in the agreement because there was no wrongdoing on his part,' Cogdell said. On Wednesday, State District Judge Andrea Beall formally accepted the dismissal of the three felony indictments, closing the case for good. In a joint statement released this morning, special prosecutors Brian Wice and Jed Silverman said, 'Justice was delayed. But to be equally sure, justice was not denied.' They noted that Paxton had fulfilled every condition of the agreement and called the resolution 'the fair, right, and just outcome for both sides.' Paxton, who has long claimed the case was politically motivated, said in when the settlement was reached he was relieved to move forward: 'There will never be a conviction in this case nor am I guilty.' The charges—and the drawn-out prosecution—were a central piece of the Texas House's impeachment of Paxton in 2023. While the Senate ultimately acquitted him, House leaders had pointed to the pending fraud case as further justification for their actions. The dismissal marks a formal end to one of the most high-profile and politically charged prosecutions in Texas history. Paxton, meanwhile, is currently mounting a campaign for the U.S. Senate against John Cornyn.
